These are the autopsy notes of the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) on the 9-year-old by who died in Badian. | Delta Dyrecka Letigio
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) will further investigate the death of a 9-year-old boy, who was initially thought to have committed suicide following the results of the autopsy conducted on his body on Wednesday afternoon, June 19.
Dr. Rene Cam, NBI-7 medico-legal officer, said that the results of the autopsy he conducted on the boy’s body showed that there were abraded ligatures at the back of the neck indicating that there was some sort of struggle for the boy and an external force tightening the rope around his neck.
Cam noted that in the father’s account, the boy was found dead with the rope of a makeshift swing around his neck outside his grandmother’s house.
The height of the swing could not have been a factor in the boy’s death as the boy could easily stand up and loosen the rope.
“The kid could not have done this to himself because if he was playing around, he would not be hurting himself. Psychologically, children at nine years old would not be thinking of killing themselves,” said Cam.
Cam also revealed that the first cervical vertebrate of the boy was dislocated from the socket.
This is the part of the spine that connects to the skull.
Such dislocation can only occur if a person jumped from a tall height with a rope around the neck, which was impossible in the case of the boy, who was seen playing before his death around a makeshift swing that was just as tall as him.
The dislocation showed marks of forceful twisting, which could mean that an external force was able to twist the boy’s head causing the dislocation.
For these reasons, Cam immediately requested for the investigation of the death of the boy as the autopsy revealed a foul play on the alleged suicide.
Read more: NBI-7 autopsy finds foul play in death of minor from Badian
Lawyer Tomas Enrile, NBI-7 director, said they would be conducting an investigation on the matter since the autopsy results showed signs of foul play.
He said they would be closely coordinating with the police to hasten the investigation.
The Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) will also be doing a parallel investigation in the case and has asked Badian Police to dig deeper into the case and not to easily conclude that the death of the child was a suicide.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Eloveo Marquez, CPPO spokesperson, assured that the Badian police were already conducting deeper investigations in the case.
Read more: CPPO works with NBI to investigate minor’s death in Badian
Former CPPO Director, Colonel Manuel Abrugena, instructed the Badian Police to hasten their investigation and share notes with the NBI-7.
Marquez reminded the chiefs of police that as a station commander, they could request for an autopsy in the CPPO’s crime laboratory if a crime was believed to have been committed or insinuated.
”To remove all doubts, the police chief can request for an autopsy of the body of the victim and that is free in the Police Crime Lab,” said Marquez.
Read more: Pa from Badian turns to Magpale, NBI for help on 9-year-old son’s death
The father of the 9-year-old boy, Neri Boy Agravante, who doubted the results of the police’s initial investigations of suicide, asked for an autopsy but was told he would have to pay P8,000 for the requested autopsy, which the Badian police did not recommend.
Agravante sought the help of outgoing Cebu Provincial Vice Governor Agnes Magapale for the money needed, to which Magpale promised to shoulder the expenses.
He was also brought to the NBI-7 to seek the agency’s help, and the NBI-7 offered a free autopsy on the boy along with the promise of an investigation should there be any foul play.
Enrile said that with foul play established, they can proceed to look for a person of interest in the “killing” of the 9-year-old boy./dbs